Mignon about Karabakh conflict: This can not continue

In case of being elected secretary general of the Council of Europe, the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will be one of the priority issues, president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Jean-Claude Mignon said on Monday.

Mignon made the remarks at his last press conference as the PACE president. The press conference was held as part of the organization's winter session.

"One of the priorities will be the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict's settlement, if I am elected secretary general of the Council of Europe. This conflict must be solved. This can not continue. This does not correspond to the spirit of the charter, signed in 1949 by the organization," Mignon said.

The winter session of the PACE kicked off on January 27.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.


/Trend/